


Being a Civillian

by OhhMyy



Series: Coming Back To Life. [8]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-25
Updated: 2016-09-25
Packaged: 2018-08-17 06:50:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8134255
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OhhMyy/pseuds/OhhMyy
Summary: On days where Avengers life is quiet, no threats or villains; Bucky notices Charlie has a tendency to vanish.





	

Sometimes life at the Avengers Tower is quiet, weeks go by without any drama or villains and it’s odd that everyone seems to revert back into civilian life with ease. Sometimes Bucky welcomes the routine but it’s amazing how quickly he can find himself bored. This boredom often leads to paying greater attention to his everyday surroundings than he often does when on a mission.

Charlie, on these weeks, disappears after breakfast (which she’s cooked more often than not, a tossup between her and Clint depending on who wakes first) at exactly 10am and re-emerges for lunch at exactly 1pm freshly showered. He has followed her at 10am twice, each time wandering down to the lab only to enter a few moments behind and be greeted by Tony and Bruce…no sign of the brunette woman.

Sometimes Bucky spars with Steve, sometimes he joins Clint for target practice (though Clint is often absent and he’s starting to wonder if the towers residents are hiding from him on purpose) and on a day where he feels less like the world is closing in on him he ventures out to explore the city (mostly alone but on occasion in the company of a friend). Natasha reads a lot, quietly and always near a window, Bucky isn’t sure if she enjoys the scenery or feels more in control when she can see oncoming threats. Bruce and Tony live in the lab more than he considers healthy and he’s almost certain Wanda and Vision are together whenever the two of them aren’t located in the communal areas of home.

Today, a warm but overcast day with the main threat being rain, Bucky sits at the kitchen counter with a few of the group; watches with a smile as his friends (almost a year and he still can’t quite get used to being a friend but he’s honoured to fit in this gaggle that consider him theirs) fight over the pancakes Charlie dishes up, yelling requests for drinks and being scolded like children at Christmas (they are actually much worse than children when it is Christmas but he’ll let that slide). They eat together, like most days, someone volunteers for dish duty (Steve…it’s usually Steve) and Charlie checks the clock.

10am she slips from the kitchen and Bucky has decided he doesn’t feel like sparring or exploring and he waits a beat before following (in a very subtle and super spy fashion he tells himself). He watches her from a distance as she enters the lab. Entering a few beats behind he’s greeted with the sight of Bruce and Tony hunched over a desk; he spins in a circle and notices nothing out of the ordinary; on a usual day this would be his cue to leave, frown on his face and a shrug in his stance but today Bucky is curious and bored and more intrigued by Charlie than ever.

“Stark?”

Tony turns briefly towards him and bobs his head in greeting before turning back to the desk and picking up a tool.

“Robocop” He greets but it’s obvious he’s being largely ignored in favour of what looks like an upgrade for his suit, metallic glove between his fingers.

“Where did Charlie go?”

It’s Bruce that answers, turning around and lifts an eyebrow in confusion, Tony having shoved a screwdriver in his mouth to pick up a different device, arms moving rapidly in front of him as he hunches his shoulders, table receiving his full attention.

“She’s in her studio” His answer is swathed in nonchalance and looks at Bucky like he’s asked a stupid question.

“Her what?”

Bruce sighs and sticks a pencil behind his ear, he gestures with a general hand wave towards what looks like a wall.

“Her studio, it’s in here, behind that door, I thought she would have told you about it, you two seem… close” Bucky gets the feeling that if Bruce were any good at euphemisms there would be one inserted there and he swallows; thought he’d hidden his crush better and makes a mental note to tone down whatever it is he’s been doing to give it away.

“Have a look, but don’t tell her I said you could” Conversation over, Bruce turns back to help Tony, grabbing the screwdriver from his mouth and berating him quietly.

Bucky walks over to the wall Bruce had pointed out, apparently walls that stick out were not, as he thought, a part of Tony’s modern quirky design. There is a small panel with a glass hole in and though it looks as much like wall as the rest of it Bucky assumes this is a door. He is correct.

The room inside is fairly plain, cream walls with a laminate wooden floor, there is an air conditioning unit on the far wall and a large and very modern stereo at the back, a bar runs around each wall. His eyes flick to Charlie, who is stretching on the floor. His mouth goes dry as he takes in her attire, or lack thereof; she’s wearing a loose jersey vest, thin and jagged at the waist so the skin on one side peeks out and a pair of underwear that looks like shorts, her feet are in a very small pair of what look like nude socks. She does the splits on the floor and his brain goes entirely blank for a good few seconds.

He’s aware that there is someone at his back and he flicks his eyes over quickly to see Bruce watching him with a smirk on his lips, eyes twinkling with mischief and he catches Tony holding up what looks like a small remote; he hears a button press and music from inside the studio fills the lab. He turns his attention back to the plain room to see Charlie up and swaying with the music before beginning a dance.

Its ballet, he knows enough of the world to be familiar with the dance, but there’s a modern edge, she twirls and twists, splits and flips and it’s graceful and angry and as hard and fast as it is soft. For someone wary of fighting and a woman who is all nervous laughter and shy self-deprecation when Tony has brought up training her, Bucky watches her body hold itself in positions that require exceptional strength and control and she switches positions with fluidity. Strong, toned, muscles twitch with the tension of her body as she jumps and contorts. He sees her move in time with the music he can hear and he’s pretty certain he’s never wanted anything in his life as much as he wants her. She dances with her toes on pointe and he bites back a wince but she doesn’t break pose and goes with it too, moving forward on the tips of her feet. He’s honestly impressed and awed as much with the dance as he is with her.

“You think that’s impressive you should see what she does with Legolas” The voice is further away and muffled but he still recognises it as Tony’s.

She buries her head in her hands as the routine ends and stays there for a few moments gathering her breath; turns her head to the door as the music stops and sees him; a horrified expression crossing her face before she schools her features into a forced smile. She scrambles to the corner of the room he can’t see from his angle and puts on a dressing gown before turning the stereo off and trudging towards the door.

Bucky briefly contemplates scarpering and notices with dread that Bruce is back in his seat with his back turned, as is Tony. He swallows hard and grimaces at the door opens. She stops in front of him, stammers a little nervously before squaring her shoulders and lifting her head.

“You saw nothing. Tony, I will be yelling at you after my shower, prepare some excuses” Bruce snorts and she glares at his back “Banner, you’ve had code green under control long enough that I’m considering yelling at you too” He closes his jaw with an audible snap and turns to offer a small apology before she storms out of the lab.

-

“Doll!” He calls after her, walking slower to give her space. “Doll! Charlie, wait!”

She halts and turns towards him, waiting for him to continue, she doesn’t look angry; she actually looks embarrassed and scared and his heart tightens slightly. She’s gone from righteous anger to looking as if she expects an insult, walls up ready for a blow and he wants to tell her all the ways he finds her amazing but all words have apparently left his mind.

“You were great”

Her posture loosens slightly and her head lifts an inch or two to look him in the eyes. It spurs him on.

“I’m serious, that was incredible. I’ve seen people fight battles with less coordination. Why didn’t you say anything about this?”

“When exactly was it supposed to enter the discussion? Hi Bucky nice to meet you, I dance in what’s supposed to be private, maybe don’t watch me through a hole in the door!” She snaps, he sighs and she runs a hand through her damp hair; loosening it from her ponytail slightly.

“Sorry Bucky, that was out of order, I’m angrier at Stark and Banner than you. You were curious”

“I’m sorry Doll, really”

“It’s alright” She responds but he gets the feeling nothing could be further from the truth.

“I still don’t get why you’re tryin’ to hide it from me though”

“I’m not hiding anything, you could have asked; I would have answered. I didn’t want an audience, doesn’t mean I was keeping it a secret, other people know and I dance with Clint.”

“You need an audience, I could watch you all day” It slips out before he’s thought it through and briefly curses his tongue for letting it fall out of his mouth. She laughs, tipping her head back and then leaning forward to press her hands against her knees, wiping some sweat from her palms before she straightens up.

“Funny that men are always more honest after watching you put your legs behind your head” He smiles but shoots her a chastising look;

“Doll, you know you’re amazin’ with or without that” His tone is full of affection and reproach and her eyes are suddenly sadder than they should be as she lets out a snort of derision; wrapping her arms around her waist slightly as if trying to protect herself.

“So amazing that you aren’t interested” She mutters it and he struggles to hear.

“Sorry Doll, what’d’ya say?”

“Nothing Bucky, don’t worry about it. I gotta go shower”

She walks away before he can respond and he’s left standing there wondering what in the world he just missed.


End file.
